Treading in Grey Owl's moccasins

Hike to famed naturalist's cabin a chance to bond with nature -- and with sons

Grey Owl's cabin, called Beaver Lodge, is found in Prince Albert National Park, some 80 kilometres north of Waskesiu. st)

Photograph by: David Ramsay
, for Canwest News Service

As I sit alone on one of the many scenic sandy beaches on the northeast end of Kingsmere Lake in Saskatchewan, there is absolute silence. On this warm Friday evening, there is no traffic noise. No blaring TVs. Nothing, except the occasional call of a single loon that glides across the water 15 metres from shore.

The wind dies down as the sun begins to set. Kingsmere Lake is remarkably peaceful, the surface smooth and the water crystal clear. I sit on the beach virtually undisturbed for 30 minutes. It is so quiet that I can hear the beat of my heart. I cannot imagine a more tranquil place on Earth.

There is no one here except myself and my sons Sean and Nathan, who accompany me on a three-day backpacking trip to Grey Owl's cabin, about 80 kilometres north of Waskesiu in Prince Albert National Park.

I think about Archibald Belaney, better known as Grey Owl, who walked this very shore 80 years ago. Perhaps he sat on this same spot, also admiring this beautiful piece of northern Canadian forest.

Grey Owl's cabin, called Beaver Lodge, is located about three kilometres northwest of our wilderness campsite. We plan to hike to the cabin to learn more about the man regarded as Canada's first protector of the environment.

Grey Owl, who lived in the 1930s in a small cabin on adjoining Lake Ajawaan, is the main reason we are making this trip. The hike is also about testing our limits, communing with nature and strengthening the bond between father and sons.

However, it is Grey Owl and his life as a dedicated naturalist, long before the concept was popular, that adds a special element to the trip.

Grey Owl's story is well-known both in Canada and abroad. He was the author of three books about the environment -- Pilgrims of the Wild (1934), Sajo and Her Beaver People (1935) and Tales of an Empty Cabin (1936) -- and his writings reflect his passion for preservation of the planet.

A plaque erected next to his cabin, where he lived with his wife, Anahereo, and his two beavers, Rawhide and Jellyroll, provides insight about the man. The plaque reads:

"I hope you understand me; I am not particularly anxious to be known at all; but my place is back in the woods, there is my home and there I stay. But in this country of Canada, to which I am intensely loyal, and whose natural heritage I am trying to interpret so that it may be better understood and appreciated, here, at least, I want to be known for what I am." -- Grey Owl, 1938

We begin our backpacking trip on the morning of Friday, June 27.

The trip starts with booking campsites, which are quite limited and given out only in person on a first-come, first-served basis, at the visitor information centre in Waskesiu. There are four wilderness campsites along the trail. We decide to book the north-end site, 17 kilometres from the trail head, so that we do the longest hike on Day 1. That allows us to use Saturday to explore the area around Grey Owl's cabin during the day, before packing up and moving on to the Chipewyan Portage campsite (seven kilometres from the trailhead) that evening. That leaves a short hike out on Sunday morning.

It takes only a few moments into the trip to realize that we need to be mindful of both bugs and bears. It would be a gross understatement to describe the mosquitoes we encounter as a problem -- horrendous, horrible, and hellish are more apt adjectives to explain how bad they actually are. While there is some respite at the campsites, we are blanketed by bugs each step of the way.

The trailhead sign includes a warning of bears in the area, and while we do not encounter any, there are plenty of signs of bear activity along the trail and there are bear sightings reported by others we meet on the weekend.

The wilderness campsites have bear caches (raised platforms with detachable ladders) to store food, cooking gear and other items such as toiletries. The cardinal rule of wilderness camping is never leave anything in a tent that might emit an odour that would attract the interest of a bear. A failure to do so can easily result in the loss of a tent -- or worse.

Our goal on the first day is to hike the 17 kilometres to our campsite in about five hours -- with full packs, we travel at a pace of four km/h. But we build in some downtime for food and water breaks, along with time to take pictures, admire the beauty of the trail and swat flies. We make good progress and arrive at our campsite by late afternoon, not having seen another person along the way. One of our favourite spots along the trail is a 100-metre section of downed fir trees about three-quarters of the way to the north-end campsite.

The campsite itself has a plentiful supply of firewood, a firepit and a picnic table. We spend a quiet but enjoyable evening at the site, resting weary muscles and tending to emerging blisters.

On Saturday, we make the six-kilometre round trip to Grey Owl's cabin.

We explore both the main cabin and a second building constructed to hold the many people who used to travel to Ajawaan Lake to visit in person with Grey Owl. His cabin is a simple wooden structure. The front section that overlooks the lake has no floor. Instead, it is cut open to allow for the formation of a beaver dam and a home for his pet beavers. The inside speaks to Grey Owl's spartan lifestyle.

A short walk from the buildings are the gravesites of Belaney, Anahareo and their daughter Silver Dawn.

We talk about how difficult it must have been to live in such a remote wilderness location, and wonder if the harshness of the environment helped cut short Belaney's life -- he died of pneumonia on April 13, 1938, at age 50.

Our final day on the trail ends with an early morning two-hour hike out of the park and then a five-hour drive back to Regina.

The trail roughly follows the Kingsmere Lake shoreline, usually 50 to 100 metres inland winding through the forest floor, along with a couple of sections that follow the beach. It is mostly gently rolling terrain that even novice hikers would enjoy. The trail is well-maintained and easy to follow. There is some deadfall to climb over and wet, marshy areas that are best traversed wearing good quality hiking boots. (The trip can also be made by canoe, an equally enjoyable but less demanding way to visit Grey Owl's cabin.)

Two of the most important considerations of overnight wilderness hiking are to have good equipment and prepare good food.

Equipment starts with footwear. I cannot emphasize enough to not only have good hiking boots, but also ensure they are well broken-in so that blisters do not ruin the backpacking experience.

We are well-stocked with good quality packs, waterproof tents, backpacking stoves, lightweight sleeping bags and self-inflating mattress pads. We also carry a water filter to lighten the load of what we have to carry. We carry about four litres of water each, which is very little on a longer trip. But because we are always close to water, we are able to stop along the way and replenish our supplies as needed.

Another useful tip is to attempt to find more than one use for the items you will be carrying. For instance, a sleeping bag stuff sack can easily be converted into a pillow by filling it with excess clothing before going to bed.

It is important to bring nutritious, high energy foods on any trip. But that does mean you cannot eat as well as you do at home.

There are a number of very good backpacking cookbooks available at bookstores. For this trip, I used a number of recipes from the book called A Fork in the Trail, and prepared in advance meals of dried chipotle pork and Moroccan chicken, which we rehydrate at our campsites. We also bring along homemade jerky and dehydrated pineapple and apricots. We also treat ourselves to chocolate mousse -- wilderness style. It combines instant chocolate mix, skim milk powder, dream whip powder and crushed chocolate wafer. Just add water and shake.

Being well-prepared makes the experience much more enjoyable.

Instead of fretting about sore feet, sore backs and unappetizing meals, the trip can be spent enjoying nature at its best.

And that includes being able to sit on a beach in solitude, marvelling at the wonders of nature -- and understanding why Grey Owl developed such an appreciation of Canada's wilderness.